An Essay On Poetry - Form, Sound & Aliens.
(“Do Not” versus “Don’t”)
Regrets do not own her
Yet the scent of cedar
Often leads her mind back
As Essay on Poetry - Form, Sound & Aliens
(“Do Not” versus “Don’t”)
Writing poetry is an emotional necessity for me. Even as I write this, I feel that first sentence is too sentimental a truth to declare. Yet, that reluctance to tell it how it is, is probably more to do with the rusted chains of my Englishness than my considered desire to be honest.
The fact is, by writing poetry I investigate my emotions. This allows me to (forgive me for using this word I do not particularly like, but), process them.
Even a rudimentary study of poetry will touch on form — the Limerick, the Sonnet, Pastoral, and of course, Haiku.
Transposing, or translating various poetic forms is nothing new. The Sonnet originated in Sicily.
A young courtly Sicilian Knight probably sought to show his artistic credentials to the Greek ideal — Plato’s Perfect Goodness, a coalescence of mind, body and soul expressed through courage, patients, fortitude and the ability to communicate these various aspects of the human condition through language.
Alas, those early Sicilian examples of the Sonnet have been buried along with that young Knight. However, educated Tuscans re-invented the “little song” (the term Sonnet has its origins in the Italian word Sonetto which in turn is derived from Sonus, meaning sound), and these Tuscan Sonnets can still be found on any good bookshelf today.
Each of these poetic forms have their own evolution. Their roots, nurtured in the soil of religious fervour, love, valour, encouragement to fight the good fight, strive endlessly for Empire or survive the oppression of misguided human beings.
What is a blues song if not the purest form of poetry?
The common themes of all these poetic forms are of course communication (to tell one’s story, to inspire), but also that these artistic forms evolve. Their sound evolves — through the…
